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In advertising, it’s crucial to maintain efficiency and cost-effectiveness through every campaign. Whether you’re a seasoned marketer or just starting with programmatic advertising, finding the best deal for programmatic TV ads is essential. In this blog post, you’ll learn about the intricacies of programmatic TV and how you can uncover the best paths, platforms, and strategies to maximize your advertising budget.
Typical paths to programmatic TV ad buying
Programmatic advertising has revolutionized how businesses reach their target audience on television and has become an increasingly popular marketing approach. So far, in 2023, 87% of connected TV (CTV) ads have been bought using programmatic methods. That percentage is expected to continue rising as more advertisers take advantage of this buying method.
To find the best deal for cheap programmatic TV, it’s essential to understand the typical paths to programmatic media buying: direct deals and programmatic auctions.
Direct deals
One common route for programmatic ad buying is direct deals with publishers and broadcasters. This approach gives you more control over your ad placements, allowing you to negotiate pricing and secure prime time slots. However, this method can be expensive as premium placements often have a premium price tag.
Programmatic auctions
Another option is programmatic auctions, where advertisers bid on available ad inventory in real time. These auctions can be public or private, each with its own benefits.
Public auction
Public auctions are the primary marketplace for cheap programmatic TV ad buying, and advertisers compete in real-time for available ad slots. This option can be cost-effective if you are strategic with bidding. However, it can be highly competitive, which could drive up prices.
Private auction
A private auction provides a more controlled bidding environment. These auctions offer access to premium inventory and the ability to negotiate directly with publishers and broadcasters. Prices are typically higher at private auctions, but they can lead to more exclusive, high-quality ad placements to better reach your target audiences.
Auction vs. direct
The auction vs. direct debate is crucial for finding the best deal in programmatic TV advertising. Direct programmatic ad buying involves establishing personal relationships with publishers and broadcasters. This approach offers more control over ad placements, creates the potential for long-term partnerships and premium positions, and allows for more negotiation power on pricing.
On the other hand, the auction route relies on real-time programmatic auctions that give advertisers more efficiency, dynamic pricing through competitive bidding, and access to diverse ad inventory. This approach also allows better data-driven decision-making to help advertisers with precise targeting and optimization.
What platforms can your programmatic ads show on?
Programmatic ads are limited to traditional television. You can use various platforms to broaden your audience reach, including blogs, lifestreams, and more. Multiple platform options also let advertisers search around for cheap programmatic ad buys.
Some popular platforms include:
- Display and video
- YouTube videos
- Custom publisher formats
- Audio ads
Unexpected platforms where you can buy programmatic TV ads
Some unexpected platforms offer unique opportunities to find the best programmatic TV deals. Some of these examples include:
- YouTube shorts
- Mobile games
- Music streaming apps
- TikTok
Try local
Local (linear) television advertising often flies under the radar, but it can be a goldmine for finding cheap programmatic ad buys. Customize your messages to local audiences by focusing on specific geographic regions. This level of specificity can lead to highly efficient ad campaigns with lower costs compared to national or global placements.
Where to get started with programmatic TV buying
When it comes to programmatic TV ad buying, you have two main options: using an agency or going directly to the marketplace.
Using an agency
Advertising agencies have the expertise to navigate the complexities of programmatic TV ad buying. By working with one, you may be able to find better deals and get help negotiating terms and optimizing your campaigns. However, remember that agency fees could take up a large portion of your budget.
Going to the marketplace
For a more hands-on approach, you can explore programmatic ad buying directly through the marketplace. This approach gives you direct control over your campaigns and the ability to explore different deals and platforms. However, you’ll want to understand programmatic advertising strongly to ensure you make the most of the marketplace.
How to optimize your bids for smarter ad spend
Finding the best deal doesn’t end with choosing the right options for programmatic buying. You need to focus on smart bidding strategies to optimize your advertising budget.
Choose placement based on segmentation
Segmentation is vital to maximizing your ad spend. By targeting the specific audience segments most likely to convert, you can make the most of your budget. Platforms often offer options to narrow your audience based on behavior, interests, and demographics.
Work with an identity resolution provider
Identity resolution is the process of matching online and offline customer data, giving you a comprehensive view of your target audience. By working with an identity resolution provider, you can make informed decisions about where and when to place your programmatic TV ads for the best results.
Create an omnichannel view of your campaign
To find the best deals on cheap programmatic ads, it’s essential to have an omnichannel view of your advertising campaign. By coordinating your programmatic media with other channels, you can create a seamless and cohesive brand experience for your audience.
Get started with programmatic TV today
Now that you better understand programmatic TV ad buying, you’re ready to get started. But how can Experian help you make the most of your programmatic advertising efforts?
At Experian, we offer a suite of data-driven solutions to enhance your programmatic TV advertising campaigns. Our extensive data and identity resolution capabilities empower you to make informed decisions to improve your targeting capabilities, optimize engagement, and more. By working together, you can unlock the potential of your programmatic TV ads and find the best deals to optimize your advertising budget.
Get started today
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Healthcare and Life Sciences teams map the patient journey to spot care gaps and guide interventions. However, clinical records cover only what happens inside clinics, not the forces driving patient decisions. Enriching these records with lifestyle, socioeconomic, and consumer-behavior insights reveals the “why” behind health outcomes. That’s where non-clinical insights step in – revealing the real-world forces that shape patient results. To address these blind spots, Experian and Komodo Health have teamed to integrate de-identified insights from millions of patient journeys with Experian’s socioeconomic and lifestyle data. This enriched view lets enterprises see each journey in full, identify care disparities, and craft smarter strategies – while rigorously protecting privacy. Driving tangible outcomes and better patient care This collaboration focuses on turning insights into action. With Experian and Komodo's integrated clinical, socioeconomic, and lifestyle data, Healthcare and Life Sciences teams can move from insight to accuracy, building adherence programs, finding hard-to-reach patients, and demonstrating treatment success. They can: Layer Komodo’s de-identified patient-level medical and pharmacy insights and analytics with Experian lifestyle and socioeconomic attributes Segment patient populations by condition, treatment history, and socioeconomic status Prioritize outreach – reducing waste and focusing resources where care is needed most For instance: Neighborhood-level gaps Identify opportunities to capture untreated patients and improve clinical trial inclusion. Income-related support Flag populations most likely to benefit from cost-saving programs, ensuring communications highlight co-pay assistance or financial relief options. Inside the data stack At the core of Komodo Health's AI-enabled healthcare analytics platform is its Healthcare Map®. This innovative tool integrates de-identified patient-level medical and pharmacy claims data from the patient journeys of over 330 million unique individuals – providing insights on diagnoses, treatments, outcomes, and care patterns across the United States. Experian enhances this data by adding socioeconomic and lifestyle characteristics that influence up to 80% of health outcomes. Together, this combined data effectively addresses essential questions such as: Which neighborhoods face the highest diabetes risk? Where is therapy abandonment spiking? When should co-pay assistance messages drop? How can we accelerate HCP outreach or clinical-trial recruitment? Experian's socioeconomic and lifestyle insights: Fueling data-driven care decisions In this context, Experian provides valuable insights into socioeconomic factors and lifestyle patterns, covering everything from household composition and income ranges to psychographics and other attributes that help build a broader understanding of an individual's circumstances. Where deep patient understanding, health engagement, and real-world evidence converge As healthcare marketing, patient engagement, and real-world data converge, the Experian and Komodo collaboration is empowering Healthcare and Life Sciences teams with fast, actionable insights. Fusing de-identified patient-level clinical data with socioeconomic and lifestyle attributes helps teams engage the right patients, and fuels research from product launches to community programs. It elevates experiences while proving impact with real-world evidence. Ready to utilize these insights? Latest posts

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Connect with us About Optimum Media Optimum Media is a multiscreen advertising business that partners with small and medium businesses, as well as national, political, media and entertainment, and agency clients across the United States. They work with advertisers to develop custom multiscreen advertising solutions powered by proprietary technology and a massive aggregated database of audience data points and TV viewership data. Latest posts